January 10, 2015 - Today's Adventure

What truly made today an adventure was the round-about way Pat Wallace and I went to get to the Witches Castle. 

It is an easy half-mile hike from the Upper Macleay parking lot near the Portland Audubon Society, or a slightly longer three-quarter mile jaunt starting from the Lower Macleay parking lot. However, since we had no clue how to get there, instead we parked at Washington Park near the Portland Zoo and started out. We first stopped at Hoyt Arboretum, which was about a 1 mile hike (somehow we got turned around and went in circles). From here, we then hiked to Pittock Mansion, or about another 1.5 miles, and then from here it was probably another 1.5 miles to the Witches Castle. If my trusty RunKeeper app on my phone is correct, we hiked 7.5 miles and my body is feeling every step of that tonight. I will spare you the TMI but suffice to say, I learned some valuable lessons on today's hike. I will in the future carry gloves in my hiking backpack. If you really want to know, ask me about it and I will share … it will make you laugh. 

The Stone House, a Works Progress Administration (WPA) project, is located in Portland’s Forest Park, one of the largest urban forested parks in the United States.

Forest Park in Portland, Oregon most notably the area around Balch Creek has some interesting history behind it as well as playing host to one of the area's most famous haunted places. In 1850, Danford Balch filed a land claim on this portion of land near what was then the fledgling settlement of Portland. Danford's land was large enough that he needed help in order to clear it. He hired a transient worker named Mortimer Stump who was from Vancouver. Balch allowed him to stay with he and his family, which consisted of his wife Mary Jane and his 9 children.

 

Mortimer was with the family so long that one thing led to another and he fell in love with Danford's 15 year old daughter Anna. Mortimer asked for permission to marry Anna but her parents refused. The couple threatened to elope and Danford exclaimed that if they did he would kill Mortimer. Well young lovers did not heed this warning and Mortimer ran off to Vancouver with Anna in November of 1858 where they were married. This sparked a feud between the Balch and Stump families.

A few weeks later Mortimer, Anna, and some other members of the Stump family returned to Portland for some supplies and encountered Danford. Having been nagged and tormented by Mary Jane to make good on his promise, Danford later claimed that his wife "bewitched" him into carrying out his threat to kill Mortimer and return their daughter to the family. In a drunken stupor, Danford pulled a shotgun and shot Mortimer in the head.  

 

Balch was promptly arrested; however, the deteriorated condition of the wooden prison allowed him to later escape while awaiting his trial. He hid out on his own property and was again found and arrested some 6 months later. Danford Balch was put on trial and convicted for the murder of Mortimer and was hanged to death on October 17, 1859. This was the first legal hanging that occurred in the newly formed Oregon Territory. Mary Jane continued to live at the Balch cabin, but at Danford's request divided up the land among her children.

Over the years, the land was passed to various owners but was of little use and was given to the City of Portland by Donald Macleay in 1897 to be used as a park. In the 1950's a stone structure was built to house restrooms and a ranger station for the park near the site of the old Balch cabin. It was maintained until the Columbus Day storm in 1962 took out the plumbing system and heavy vandalism over the years forced park officials to abandon it rather than embark on costly repairs. It remains as a favorite spot to rest along the trail. This has since became known as "The Witch's Castle".

It is said that strange occurrences occur in this area. Plasma orbs have been photographed in some cases. Some say that when you visit this area around midnight, many apparitions can bee seen in the area and appear as if they are in some sort of battle or war against each other. It is believed that these may be the ghosts of Danford, Mortimer, Anna, and Mary Jane returning from the hereafter. Perhaps these are indeed the spirits of the Balch and Stump families carrying out their ghostly feud through all of time.

Good riddens 2014...Bring on 2015

I am writing about challenges this year because I have faced many. Some of them I overcame well and others not so much. The two I took one for 2014 were to improve my spiritual health as well as my physical health. In order to achieve my spiritual health goal, I chose to read one spiritual book a month and, in order to reach my physical health goal, I chose to do one hike a month. I met my goal of one hike a month, every month, but I failed at my goal of reading one book a month. I only completed five books. I learned that I am not a huge fan of reading. If I have 'free' time, there are many other things I enjoy doing more: hiking, 5Ks, crocheting, scrap-booking, card-making, sewing, crafting, photography, etc. 

A challenge is to do something you are not sure you can do, but have wanted to do or been interested in a while. I am always up for a challenge. It is through challenging myself that I grow. I will change as a result of stretching my capabilities beyond my comfort zone. Why should we challenge ourselves? By doing so, we are able to...

#1 Grow as an individual - It all starts with us. We need to discover more about ourselves and what we are good at, improve our knowledge and skills in familiar topics and learn more about things that we are not as good at. I want to grow as a person and as I engage in introspective thinking, I want to be more spontaneous, humble, honest, spiritual, etc.
#2 Become healthier both physically and mentally - "Health is Wealth." I can physically challenge myself to exercise and eat better. A healthy body yields a healthy spirit. I want to challenge myself mentally by reading more, learning new things, taking part in competitions that will test my skills. A healthy and active mind will keep me physically well, too!
#3 Save money - Fact: It is a challenge to save money. Many of us spend it on the latest gadgets, clothes, accessories, books, going out with friends to the movies...the list is endless! Money cannot buy us happiness but it can help us rest easier and enjoy life more. I want to set goals and challenge myself to save by asking: "Do I really need this?"
#4 Become a better friend or partner - Friends, family and good health are important things in life. Having good, real friends is more often than not needed in our lives to provide mutual support, allowing us to grow and be happy. But am I being the best friend I can be? Do I listen enough? Do I reach out enough to show them I care? Being a good friend is hard work and requires conscious, consistent effort. I want to challenge myself to become a better friend and make mine and my friend's lives happier and better in more ways than one.
#5 Seek inspiration and be more creative - All great artists and innovators learn one golden rule: Inspiration must be sought. I want to be creative and seek inspiration – it does not simply knock on my door. So, I will go outside. Experience new things. Challenging myself to find ways to become inspired is a must. Creativity is a muscle that needs to be stretched constantly – otherwise it withers up and die.
#6 Gain new experiences and have more fun - The alarm clock goes off, I get up and go through my daily routines, then return home to finish off my day. Sound familiar? Many of us go through a routined lifestyle, but it can often get mundane and boring. The truth is, it is easy to do the same old thing. It can even make us feel safe, but, why not challenge ourselves to try new things and gain new experiences? We can meet new people, learn more, have more fun, improve our skills and grow as a person.
#7 Achieve peace and happiness - Peace and happiness are usually the end results of successful challenges, but they can be challenges all on their own. Why not challenge ourselves to be happier and find more peace? I will think of what makes me happy and at ease and will jot them down. I will make an effort to slow down to smell the roses and give myself room to relax once in awhile – I deserve it! Having time for myself to unwind and do the things I love is important for emotional, mental, spiritual and physical well-being.
 
When we make ourselves do something “hard” and we finish, we put a little notch in our belt of self-belief which translates into self-esteem. Self-esteem is something we are born with, but i can be battered and bruised as we grow. We have to work hard to nourish and grow our “self-estimation” of who we are and what we are capable of because that defines our beliefs about our worth in this lifetime. On the other hand, when we avoid challenges, we undermine our self-esteem by saying “I can’t.” We miss opportunities to discover things about ourselves like strengths, preferences and maybe even passions. We set ourselves up for a life of mediocrity full of regrets and what-ifs.

My challenge for this year, should I decide to do it, is again twofold. I am going to take on the 365Project. You may ask, "What is the 365Project?" 365 Projects are simple, you take one photo every day for a year. It can be anything, something you have done, a self portrait, your shoes! Anything! Others may ask, "Why?" Taking a photo each day can be a big undertaking, however the payoffs and the sense of achievement at the end can be great. I am hoping taking photos every day will improve my photography skills, forcing myself to come up with new ideas and making me look at life a little bit differently.

The other challenge I have decided to take on is...a 10K. I know that I can do a 5K, I have done many of them. A 10K is 6.2 miles and most 10Ks have a 2-hour time limit so that is a challenge, to keep a pace to finish 6.2 miles in two hours. I so badly want to do The Greater Columbia River Crossing, but I have been told the bridge is steep and with my knees I am unsure if I can accomplish this. So, I will be taking on The Bridge of the Gods in August in preparation...I hope to do them both.

 I would love to hear about the last thing you did that was hard, that challenged your belief about what you were capable of – or who you are, how you accomplished it and are you planning any new challenges...